It has been said in many posts before, hair is made up of protein, as a matter of a fact the hair is made up of 70 percent protein by nature, L cysteine, and L Methionine are the sulfur amino acids that form 'keratin', which is the protein structure of hair, egg yolk which contains the two amino acids naturally.The remaining 30 % is moisture.
By adding protein to your regimen, the hair will be stronger and more resistant to breakage and ultimately healthy and full. As mentioned before, women with relaxed hair or color treated hair need more protein as the chemical process breaks down protein in the hair. In other words, relaxing or colour treating your hair compromises the protein structure of the hair and weakens it by breaking the protein bonds in the hair shaft. The stronger the relaxer or dye and the longer it is left on the hair, the weaker the protein bonds become and for this reason, the hair will be thin and lifeless.
How can I replenish my hair with protein?
There are two types of protein treatment, the first kind may be washed out and the second is leave in. Usually the former type of protein treatment should be applied to towel dried hair after shampooing and usually requires staying in the hair before rinsing. Whilst, the leave in treatment, as the names suggests requires the treatment to be left in the hair without rinsing it out. You may opt for either treatment. The first kind of treatment which may be washed out, may also come in the form of hard and light protein .
The fact that hard and light protein treatment are distinguished, clearly, all protein treatments are not created equal. For a light protein treatment, look for products that bare the name "re constructor" for routine care. This may be applied two to three times a month, but is highly recommended to be used with a moisture treatment after the application to counteract the dryness that may be associated with protein. Too much protein will make the hair brittle and crunchy. Some Deep Conditioners may also contain light protein which may be used on a regular basis and may too replenish the hair with protein.
Contrastingly, if your hair is breaking off due to damage which may come from chemical damage, you will need a hard protein treatment to save as much hair as you can. Though, ladies who have chemically treated hair can also opt to do hard protein treatments, whether or not the hair is severely damaged, but as a preventative measure but is recommended to be kept at a minimum, to prevent overload protein in the hair which may lead to dryness and ultimately breakage.
How will I know when to use protein?
If you have chemically treated or perform chemical services on the hair, whether it is bleached, relaxed or you use a lot of heat, you will require more protein than someone who is natural, as all the aforementioned services, break down or alter protein bonds in the hair shaft and as such, must be replenished and a protein treatment now becomes necessary. But as stated times and times before, too much protein will lead to dryness and eventually breakage so be careful. It is usually recommended that women who have chemical services done to the hair use protein 2 times a month, while someone who is completely natural may only need protein once a month. And of course, protein must be counteracted with moisture.
See post "Protein and Moisture treatments, what's the difference"?
No comments:
Post a Comment